Quitting Cigarettes (And Other TAOLY One-shots)
by pointlessfangirl
Summary: Klaine one-shots set in the verse of my fic, The Art of Losing Yourself. Feel free to send prompts. You can read these without reading TAOLY, just know that these include badboy!Blaine. Rating may change.
1. Author's Note

_Hello to anyone still reading my stories. I'm still working on my Once inspired Klaine story, but I haven't been updating as much as I'd like because I'm currently attempting to write an original story, which has kind of been my summer project. I've kind of been neglecting my fic because I'm so immersed in my own story right now. I'm not super motivated at the moment to write more of more of my Once story at the moment, so I wanted to write some one-shots set in the verse of my other story, The Art Of Losing Yourself. That was the story that I had the most fun while writing, and it's my baby, so I thought I would write some more in that verse to stretch my fanfic writing muscles. Feel free to leave me some prompts, as long as they can relate or be set in the TAOLY verse (so don't send me a prompt that involves fantasy creatures or something). You can leave the prompts in the comments or you can PM me. I can't guarantee that I'll answer to all the prompts or that I'll write something for all of them, but I'll read them all and take them into consideration. I just really miss TAOLY, and I miss the days when writing fanfic came easily to me. So yeah, if you liked reading TAOLY, please send some prompts if you want!_


	2. Quitting Cigarettes

Quitting smoking was harder than Blaine expected.

He hadn't even been smoking for that long in his life, only about two years. At first, Blaine had tried smoking so that he could have an excuse to get away from annoying people, and to skip class. But now, he didn't really feel the need to continue. Especially with Kurt now in his life.

Kurt hated it. He hated the smell, the act, what cigarettes can do to the human body (although Blaine would never let Kurt get over the fact that he had called Blaine "smoking" once when he was tipsy and Blaine had a cigarette in his mouth. Bad puns were something Kurt hated, and making one when he couldn't help himself made him feel ashamed).

Blaine had tried everything. He went online and google searched "how to quit smoking", and through the internet, he was introduced to a book that was supposed to help.

"I'm supposed to read it and smoke at the same time," Blaine told Kurt. "It's supposed to make my brain go, 'what the fuck are you doing?'"

Kurt looked over at the book. "Do you think it will help?"

Blaine shrugged. "Worth a shot. I have to start somewhere."

Kurt smiled and kissed his boyfriend's cheek. "I'm proud of you." Kurt paused, and then looked down at the ground. "You know how much I hate smoking, but you don't have to quit just because of me. I don't want to be the only reason."

Blaine shook his head at his boyfriend's concern and kissed the top of his head. "I'm not. I mean, I'd be lying if I said you weren't part of the reason. You practically motivated me to do it. But I'm doing this for myself, okay? I'm trying my best _not_ to die at forty from lung cancer."

The book had started off well. Blaine did as it told, throwing away his pack of cigarettes in the trash, but keeping one to smoke as he read. Reading it was like torture, and putting in the effort to quit for real was even worse torture. Blaine had quit a lot of things in his life, but cigarettes were always just _there_ whenever he needed them. He never thought it would be so difficult to let go of something so conveniently simple.

"You okay?" Kurt asked one afternoon.

They were scrawled across Kurt's bed, Blaine lying on his back with his elbow thrown over his eyes. A coffee stirrer was sticking up from between his teeth. Blaine started using coffee stirrers, pencils, and sometimes lollipops to help replace the feeling of a cigarette in his mouth. Kurt had suggested nicotine gum so that Blaine didn't have to lose the taste completely, but Blaine thought the gum was stupid and let people believe they were on a better track, when really they weren't. He wanted to fully commit and quit everything.

Kurt looked at his distraught boyfriend. He looked like he was recovering from a hangover. "How are you feeling?"

Blaine, with his elbow still covering his eyes and the stirrer still in his mouth, said, "Like I want one."

Kurt ran a hand through Blaine's unruly curls. "Sorry."

"Don't be. It's not your fault I got hooked on this stupid shit. Although it did look cool for a bit."

Kurt shrugged, not knowing how to make his boyfriend feel better. "Um…at least it's not cocaine."

Blaine laughed. "I almost tried coke at a party once. Thank god that didn't happen."

Kurt pushed Blaine's head gently. "How come you do so much dumb stuff? You're lucky cigarettes kill you slowly."

Blaine hummed. Kurt felt bad for him; he knew Blaine's cravings must be at their peak since he was only just starting to quit. Blaine wasn't even a chain smoker, and yet quitting looked like it was killing him. Kurt could rant all day long about how Blaine shouldn't have tried them in the first place, but he didn't know Blaine two years ago, and he didn't know about the things he was going through.

"This sucks," Blaine groaned.

Kurt leaned in close to Blaine and gently took the coffee stirrer from between his teeth, noticing the tiny bite marks chewed onto it. Blaine's lips remained opened, but he never removed his elbow from his eyes. Kurt leaned down and softly pressed his lips against Blaine's. Blaine knew that Kurt had no idea how he was feeling, but the fact that someone could feel so much sympathy over _cigarettes_ melted Blaine's heart.

Blaine kissed back just as softly, almost as if their lips were just resting against each other. Their mouths were open and moving slowly, because there was no rush, and Blaine needed something calming amongst the chaos.

Their lips separated with a tiny smack, and Kurt removed Blaine's elbow from his eyes so that it was resting over his head. Blaine stared up at Kurt with bright eyes, and Kurt smiled.

"It sucks a lot," Kurt said. "But you can do it. I know you can."

"You think so?" Blaine asked. He had meant for it to come out sarcastically, but instead his voice sounded like he was asking a genuine question. "I could relapse and end up smoking my entire life, and maybe I_ will_ die at forty from lung cancer."

Kurt shook his head. "You won't. It's gonna suck a lot, and you'll probably have cravings every now and then, but I know you can do it. You've done things a lot harder than quitting cigarettes."

"Oh, I've definitely done things a lot _harder_, that's for sure," Blaine purred with a smirk, slipping his hand slowly into Kurt's back pocket.

Kurt laughed and smacked his hand away. "Get away, you perv."

Blaine responded by pulling Kurt's face down and kissing him roughly on the lips. Fuck cigarettes. They may have been addicting, but there was nothing as intoxicating as the sensation of Kurt's mouth on his own.


	3. Shower Tunes

_AN: Songs used are I'm Not Gonna Teach Your Boyfriend How To Dance With You by Black Kids and Somewhere Only We Know by Keane. But I drew inspiration from Darren Criss's acoustic cover of the latter._

Kurt loved staying over at Blaine and Cooper's apartment, especially when Cooper wasn't around. Not that he didn't like Cooper, but being alone with Blaine in an empty house took Kurt's mind to visions of a hopeful future. Maybe he was too young to be thinking about a place with his boyfriend, but he couldn't help it.

It was a Friday night, and Burt had given permission for him to stay the night. Kurt was pretty sure his dad knew that he and Blaine were sexually active (although he'd never ask him if he knew for sure), but Burt never had any problems trusting Kurt, so if he did know, he was fine with it. Kurt was lying on his stomach, buried under Blaine's sheets, scrolling through his phone. He was waiting for Blaine to finish up his shower since they had both just come from work at Burt's garage and they were covered in grease and sweat.

Kurt propped himself up on his body, swinging his legs in the air back and forth. The apartment was quiet, and that's when he heard a muffled voice coming from down the hall.

_You are the girl that I've been dreaming of…_

Kurt's eyes snapped up from his phone, and he froze, listening more carefully. The voice was definitely singing, and it sounded like it was coming from inside the apartment.

_Ever since I was a little girl. You are the girl…_

Quietly, Kurt got up from Blaine's beg, detangling himself from the sheets and abandoning his phone. He quickly but silently made his way to the hallway only to discover that the singing was coming from the bathroom.

_The word's on the streets and it's on the news, I'm not gonna teach him how to dance with you…_

Kurt slowly crept towards the bathroom door and pressed his ear against it. Blaine was _singing_. He had never heard Blaine sing before. He knew Blaine could play instruments, such as the guitar and piano, but he never knew Blaine sang. And in the shower, of all places. The pitter-pattering of the water hitting the tub accompanied Blaine's voice like a continuous applause.

Kurt couldn't contain his wide smile. He pressed his hand over his mouth in case any embarrassing, unintentional squeals came out. Blaine was _singing_. He was singing, and he sounded beautiful. His voice reminded Blaine of a warm cup of tea with honey on an autumn day. He had the kind of voice that was versatile and could match any genre of music. Kurt could only imagine how Blaine's voice would sound on a microphone with instrumental accompaniment instead of the echo-ey acoustics of the shower.

Blaine continued to sing the song, adding some riffs here and there, and Kurt fell more in love with Blaine in that moment. He never knew his boyfriend sounded so good. He thought back to all those times when he sang in front of Blaine, whether it was for the glee club on a stage or just singing a line or two while he was bored. He wondered if Blaine was too shy to sing in front of him, or if it was just something he liked to keep to himself. Kurt couldn't imagine Blaine ever being shy about something, even though he had seen Blaine in his most vulnerable moments. Blaine was the kid who rolled his eyes at teachers and gave death glares to the bullies at school. Hell, Blaine was the kid who could _look_ like a bully, with his messy hair and dark clothing and reckless attitude. Regardless, Kurt wanted Blaine to sing to him all the time now that he knew how amazing his voice sounded.

The water shut off, and Kurt came back to reality. He quickly ran back to Blaine's room and re-buried himself under the sheets. A few minutes later, Blaine returned to the room, his hair damp and dressed only in his underwear. He must have noticed the way Kurt was staring at him, because he gave him an odd look.

"You good?" Blaine asked, throwing his dirty clothes into the hamper next to his window. "You look like a deer in headlights."

Kurt nodded, almost a little too excessively. "I'm fine. Just, uh, excited waiting for you."

Blaine raised his eyebrow and smirked. "Oh, really?" He climbed onto the bed and crawled over Kurt, who was giggling when Blaine's lips tickled his neck. Despite how tired they both were from work, neither of them went to bed early that night.

The next morning, Kurt woke up alone. He stretched his muscles like a sleepy cat and rubbed at his eyes. He found Blaine in the kitchen, drinking orange juice straight out of the carton.

"Hey sleepy head," Blaine said when Kurt came to his side. He planted a kiss on Kurt's head.

"Help me with breakfast, you savage," Kurt said, and began to raid the cupboard for pancake mix.

"Why am I a savage?"

"Because you drink orange juice straight from the carton."

"Come on, everyone's totally done that."

"Not me," Kurt smiled. "I'm prim and proper."

Blaine rolled his eyes. "Says the guy who eats whole cheesecakes and pizzas."

Kurt laughed and turned the stove on. Blaine decided to help Kurt make breakfast, and they worked side by side in silence for a moment.

"Blaine?" Kurt asked.

"Yeah?"

"Have you ever sung in front of anyone?"

Blaine looked confused. "Um, no?"

"Oh."

Blaine looked like he was trying to be nonchalant. "That was…random. Why?"

"I heard you singing in the shower last night. You sounded so good."

Kurt had never seen someone's cheeks go pink that quickly. "Um, what? I wasn't singing. Must have been someone next door."

"Oh, come on, Blaine. I knew it was you. You were singing a Black Kids' song."

"Oh, god," Blaine sighed, looking mortified. He hung his head low like he was embarrassed. Kurt immediately took action and placed his hands under Blaine's chin, trying to get him to look at him.

"No!" he said. "No, Blaine, don't be embarrassed! You were amazing!"

"I thought I was being quiet…"

"Please don't be embarrassed," Kurt reassured him. "I mean, just look at me. I never stop singing, and most of the time it's not even good!"

"That's not true!" Blaine protested, meeting Kurt's eyes. "You always sound good. I leave all the singing to you."

"Blaine, you sounded beautiful," Kurt told him. "I can't believe I've never heard you sing before."

Blaine shrugged. "It's just not really my thing."

Kurt pouted. "But it is. I wish you could have heard yourself from my perspective. I mean it. You really did sound beautiful. I wouldn't have mentioned it if it wasn't true. I could fall asleep and wake up to your voice everyday and never get sick of it."

Blaine blushed. "Thank you."

Kurt kissed the bow of Blaine's lips and smiled at him. "Um, I don't want to pressure you, but…do you think maybe you could, you know…sing for me? Please?"

Blaine blushed again, and looking at Kurt's pleading eyes, he knew there was no way he could turn down his boyfriend. "Uh, sure. Just you though, okay?"

"Of course," Kurt kissed Blaine again. After they finished eating their breakfast, Blaine retrieved his acoustic guitar from inside his closet and the couple settled in the living room, the TV on mute. Blaine cleared his throat and strummed the guitar once to check that it was in tune. Even though Blaine was so cute when he was nervous, Kurt couldn't help but feel a little bad for asking his boyfriend to do this. Singing in front of someone was always nerve-wracking, especially if it was someone who's opinion you deeply valued. Blaine began to play his guitar and sing.

_I walked across an empty land; I knew the pathway like the back of my hand…_

Kurt couldn't remove his eyes from Blaine as his voice resonated throughout the room. The sound of the acoustic guitar added the perfect coffee shop vibe to Blaine's voice. His voice was stunning, like a voice that everyone would be annoyed at if he were to sing karaoke. All Kurt wanted to do was lay back, close his eyes and allow himself to be immersed in Blaine's soothing voice.

Blaine didn't end up singing the whole song, only a verse and the chorus. The whole time, he had been too nervous to look at Kurt, so he kept his eyes focused on his fingers moving up and down the neck of the guitar. He finished the song by strumming a final chord and letting his voice fade.

Blaine wasn't as adventurous with his voice for this song like he was with his shower song, but Kurt didn't care. He didn't care that he didn't sing full out or do crazy riffs. He still sung, and he still allowed Kurt to see a part of him that was normally kept hidden. He sounded beautiful, and Kurt couldn't have been more proud of him.

"So, yeah," Blaine said awkwardly. "That's it."

Before he knew it, Kurt's lips were quickly pecking his. Kurt cupped Blaine's face between his hands and looked him in the eyes.

"That was beautiful," Kurt half-whispered. It was meant for Blaine and only Blaine. "Thank you, Blaine. Your voice is amazing."

Blaine's lips quirked into a smile. He was still a little embarrassed, but Kurt was always honest, and when Kurt moved the guitar out of the way and lay his head down on Blaine's lap, asking for more songs, he knew this was no exception.


	4. Birthday

_AN: My birthday was recently, so I decided to write a birthday themed one shot._

Finally. For once, Kurt didn't have to spend his birthday at school.

It was a Saturday morning, and he was awoken by the sound of his phone buzzing multiple times. He was greeted with birthday texts from his friend's and family. Burt had already barged into his room earlier that morning to give him a proper birthday hug, but Kurt groaned into his pillow and went back to sleep. Eighteen didn't feel any different than seventeen, but he woke up feeling refreshed and giddy from all his birthday messages.

**HAPPY BDAY CUTIE! let me kno if u wanna hang later! **** 3**– Mercedes

**Never thought id be texting you, but happy birthday lady hummel** – Santana

**dude come downstairs so we can eat breakfast, mom isn't letting me eat until you have first servings btw happy bday **– Finn

Kurt sighed happily and stretched his arms and legs like a lanky cat. Just as he was about to get up, another text chimed in.

**Happy birthday gorgeous. I'll see you later.** –Blaine

Kurt shivered. Blaine called him gorgeous and didn't use any emoticons or flashy words in his text. It made Kurt all the more excited that the text was so simple and subtle; meaning more was to come later.

He went downstairs to eat pancakes with his family. Kurt hadn't planned anything specific for the day; he stopped having full on birthday parties long ago. Instead, he would just hang out or go to dinner with a few close friends, but never anything extravagant. Kurt spent the day replying to Facebook messages sent from his distant relatives, having to answer annoying questions (how does being 18 feel? Do you feel like a grown up now?)

Carole and Burt were busy baking a cake for Kurt, even though he politely declined several times. Carole always told him that Kurt was too humble to let anyone do anything for him, especially when it came to food. Kurt was always the one baking, but Carole insisted. Well, with Burt attempting to help.

It was around six o'clock when the doorbell rang. Kurt answered it, and there was Blaine, dressed in a white button up shirt with his classic leather jacket thrown over it. He held a bouquet of red and yellow roses in his hands. With his bright eyes and slight stubble, he looked like the most handsome man Kurt had ever seen. Which was saying something, because their substitute Spanish teacher Mr. Martinez existed.

Kurt shook his head at the roses and flushed. "It's not Valentines Day."

"You're right," Blaine said. "It's your birthday. That's more important than V day."

Kurt threw his arms around Blaine's neck and hugged him so tightly that Blaine made pretend choking noises. He hugged Kurt back with just as much enthusiasm and kissed his forehead.

"Happy birthday."

"Thank you," Kurt replied, and took the roses to put in his room. Kurt was thrilled. He'd never received flowers from a boy he loved until now. They were beautiful. Kurt decided that he was going to press them in books when they started to wilt.

Blaine was talking to Burt by the time he came back downstairs. Blaine and Burt had gotten along perfectly ever since Kurt started bringing him over more after Burt got over the initial shock of Kurt dating someone so different than himself.

"Ready to go?" Blaine asked, and Kurt nodded excitedly. They were going out to have dinner, and afterwards Blaine was coming back to the Hummel-Hudson house to sleep over.

"I was gonna remind you of your curfew, but you're an adult now," Burt sighed, looking both sad and happy. "You're all grown up."

Kurt smiled softly at his dad and gave him a hug. "Oh, dad. If it makes you feel any better, I'll come home at curfew. Maybe." Burt laughed.

* * *

"You smell nice," Kurt told Blaine. They were snuggled up in the backseat of Blaine's (technically Cooper's) car after dinner. They were too full and too tired to even think about driving right now, even though Kurt was worried they would fall asleep in the car and not wake up until it was pitch black outside.

Blaine did smell nice. Ever since he quit smoking, the smell of stale cigarettes was gone and Kurt could now smell Blaine's prominent cologne properly. There was also a musky smell that could only be identified as Blaine; something that could soothe Kurt while also driving him wild.

"For once," Blaine mumbled. Kurt laughed and snuggled further into Blaine's warm embrace.

"I've never spent my birthday with someone I love," Kurt said. "At least, not someone I love romantically. I didn't think I would for a long time."

Blaine's hand rubbed up and down Kurt's back absent-mindedly. "Why would you think that? There's no doubt in my mind that if you never met me, you'd still managed to snatch yourself a hot boyfriend. I mean, look at you."

Kurt shrugged. "Hey. Don't talk about if we never met. And there's no hot gay boys at our school."

"You're right," Blaine nodded. "Just me."

Kurt laughed again. "Do you think we would have met even if you hadn't transferred to McKinley?"

Blaine thought about it for a moment. "I don't know. I don't believe in fate. But I'd like to think that you'd be in my life no matter what. It's because of you that I'm not as fucked up as I used to be."

Kurt leaned up and kissed Blaine softly. "Nah. You're the one who helped yourself. I was just there, cheering you on in the background. Like a cheerleader."

Blaine shook his head playfully and brought his hand up behind Kurt's head, pulling him in for a kiss. Kurt pushed at Blaine's chest, leaning him back against the seat. Their kiss slowly became heated until Kurt was gently nipping at Blaine's bottom lip. Blaine grabbed Kurt's face between his hands and worked at his lips, kissing him the exact way he knew Kurt liked. Kurt ran his fingertips along Blaine's jaw, feeling the slight stubble there. He slid his hand down Blaine's toned chest, feeling the fabric of the crisp white shirt. They broke apart; both of their cheeks pink, and lay their foreheads together.

"Happy birthday, baby," Blaine whispered hoarsely. Kurt shivered, and attached his lips to Blaine's once more. It wasn't glamorous, but it was certainly the best birthday ever.


	5. Rejection

_Giants In The Sky_ was not a difficult song to sing.

In fact, Kurt had been singing it ever since he was a little kid. He had an extensive amount of songs in his repertoire, and _Giants In The Sky_ from _Into The Woods_ was one of them. When he discovered it was the male audition piece for a Lima community production of _Into The Woods_, he knew he had to try out.

He thought he had it in the bag. He sounded great on the song, and when he went in for the audition, the casting directors had impressed faces. Kurt knew he was talented. There was no doubt about that. He wasn't afraid to feel confident about his voice, even though it wasn't a conventional male voice. He was often teased for his high pitch, but he didn't let it bother him anymore. After all, how many males could reach a high F? He was unique and ambitious, ready to take on any role he could get.

That was why it was such a shock when Kurt found his name absent on the callback list in the local Lima community theatre.

He didn't understand. The audition was a piece of cake. He tried out for the role of Jack and thought he would have it no problem; or at least be called back for a different role. Kurt had always been told to not dwell on the failure of an audition before. It was just common knowledge that every actor or actress should know.

But it didn't soften the blow.

Kurt hadn't performed in a musical for a long time. His urge to perform itched him every time he listened to a musical soundtrack or saw a production live. He grew up doing community theatre, and it fueled the performance-loving side of him. He didn't like auditioning for McKinley's musicals since they tended to pick shows that had the stereotypical macho manly-man characters, like _West Side Story_ and _Grease. _Kurt never got picked to play roles like that. He even overheard teachers talking about him, saying how much of a "lady" he was, and that effeminate boys couldn't play manly roles.

Kurt left the Lima community theatre feeling defeated. He didn't want to feel this way, but the sounds of his teacher's voices saying how he wasn't good enough for the role echoed in his head as he drove home. For the first time since being bullied by the jocks at school, he felt worthless. The moment Kurt got home, he lay in his bed and took a long nap. He desperately felt like crying, and he was beginning to feel a lump form in his throat, but no matter how much he wanted to, no tears came out. His exhaustion took over his body, and he was pulled into sleep.

* * *

He didn't feel any better when he woke up. His cheeks felt hot and the inside of his head was foggy and disoriented. It wasn't until he saw his phone buzzing with a text that he remember he was in his room.

**Im bored. Wanna get coffee?** – Blaine

Getting out of bed was the last thing Kurt wanted to do. But then he got another text from Blaine right after he read the first one.

**Im already outside lol** – Blaine

Kurt sighed into his pillow and tried to swallow down the lump in his throat. He didn't bother changing his clothes or fixing up his hair. He grabbed his phone and wallet and marched downstairs in the same wrinkled, periwinkle blue sweater and black jeans that he'd worn to the Lima community theatre.

Blaine was parked in Kurt's driveway, as promised. A Billy Joel song played lightly through his car radio, and he gave Kurt a smile that he would normally find sexy. Today, however, he couldn't even make a fake smile.

"That's a good color on you," Blaine said, raking his eyes up and down Kurt's torso. Kurt looked down at his hands, fiddling with his long sleeves, and just like that, Blaine knew something was wrong.

"What's wrong?" Blaine asked, sincerity lacing his tone. Kurt remembered when Blaine hated showing concern and he gave off the bad-boy, careless attitude. He still gave off that vibe, but it was more toned down now.

Kurt leaned his head back onto the passenger's seat and exhaled slowly. Blaine looked at him for a long time, and then began to pull out of the driveway. Throughout the drive, he didn't push Kurt to talk about what was wrong, which Kurt was grateful for. Kurt was the kind of person who wanted to know immediately if something was wrong with Blaine_. I could never date myself,_ Kurt thought.

They pulled into the Lima Bean parking lot and silently got out of the car. Kurt was happy to see that the shop wasn't very busy. He couldn't deal with large crowds of people right now.

"I got you," Blaine said, and kissed the side of Kurt's head. Normally, Kurt would protest and pull out his wallet to buy his coffee before Blaine could make it to the counter, but he couldn't even find the energy to race Blaine today. He succumbed and let Blaine pay for his coffee. He found a seat near the back of the shop, one with a cushioned booth, and waited.

Blaine sat next to him with two coffees in hand, and Kurt already knew that Blaine had gotten Kurt a salted caramel mocha. His usual coffee order was a grande non-fat mocha, but he tended to get sweeter things when he was stressed out or upset. Blaine must have picked up on this, because he ordered Kurt's favorite. Despite how sad he was, Kurt smiled.

Blaine noticed, and gently kissed the corner of Kurt's mouth. His boyfriend's eyes were sad, and his posture was sloppy.

"What happened?" Blaine asked, putting his arm around Kurt. "Was it those fucking jocks again at school? I swear, if they ever-"

Kurt shook his head. "No. It wasn't them. For once."

Blaine rubbed circled into Kurt's shoulder with his fingers. "Then what is it?"

Kurt shrugged. "It's stupid."

"Hey," Blaine said in a concerned yet firm tone. Kurt turned his head to look at him.

"Nothing is stupid when it comes to you. You can tell me anything."

The urge to cry that had been harboring inside Kurt was finally unleashed at the sound of Blaine's words. Tears began to slide down Kurt's cheeks, and he worked on controlling his breathing before he answered. Blaine sat patiently at Kurt's side, stroking the back of Kurt's head.

"It was just this stupid audition," Kurt said shakily when he felt like he could speak. "I just really wanted it. I thought I had it no problem. My audition went so well and it was a song I'd been singing for years. I just…I haven't performed in a musical in so long, and it gets hard when you don't see your name on a stupid callback list. I'm such a crybaby. I should be used to rejection by now…but I hate having to sit by and watch Rachel always get solos in glee or the lead in the musical, or how Mercedes always gets the loudest applauses when she sings. It just sucks to see your friends have so many things happening for them, and you don't have anything."

Kurt wiped away at his tears and choked out a small laugh. "God, sorry. I have to keep it together."

"Kurt," Blaine soothed. "I'm sorry. I'm not into that musical theatre stuff or whatever, but…you need to know that you're talented."

Kurt sighed. "My voice sounds like I never hit puberty and I look like I'm still 12."

"First of all, you do _not_ look like you're twelve," Blaine said. "And second, being rejected from something doesn't mean you're not talented. I've heard you sing before, and you're _amazing_. Seriously, I don't know any guys who can sing like you can. Look, I'm no actor, but I can imagine how much it sucks to get rejected from something you really wanted."

Kurt laid his head on Blaine's shoulder and nodded.

Blaine continued. "They're fucking dumb for not letting you into that musical. I know you can out sing anyone in this town."

Kurt laughed. He knew Blaine was just trying to make him feel better, but in that moment, he felt like he couldn't even out sing a bird if he tried.

"Kurt…" Blaine placed his hand under Kurt's chin and lifted it so that they were making eye contact. Kurt stared into the warm hazel shade of Blaine's eyes.

"Please don't feel bad. Your talent is not based on this one thing. I know you'll have a million other opportunities. I mean, fuck. Just look at me. I've fucked up more times that you've eaten breakfast. But I'm not worthless because of that."

Kurt shook his head in amazement at his boyfriend. "Why are you so wonderful?"

Blaine smirked and kissed Kurt's cheek. "I believe in you."

Kurt almost wanted to cry again, but not from sadness this time. "I believe in you too," Kurt whispered against the worn leather of Blaine's jacket.

_AN: I mostly needed to write this for myself. Recently, something similar happened to me. I auditioned for a musical and didn't get a single callback, even though I thought I was going to get something. (I would have been over the moon even if I got a chorus role). I love musical theatre and I haven't been in a musical for a long time, so naturally, I got that urge to perform. Of course, I didn't get in and I was (and still am a little) heartbroken about it. So I know Kurt and Blaine may be a little unrealistic with their reactions in this fic, but I mostly wrote this for myself to help me cope. I hope it was still good, notheless._


	6. Share

_AN: I'm cranky about school and glee spoilers on tumblr, so I need to write something fluffy. This was partially inspired by Esperanza Spalding's cover of I Can't Help It, originally by Michael Jackson._

Kurt had never shared clothes with anyone in his life. He was a picky person and didn't like to share his personal belongings. Each night, he would carefully select his outfit for the next day and lay it out so he could get ready faster. He never had someone to swap clothing with, unless Finn counted (but Kurt would never borrow one of Finn's sweaty hoodies, no matter how many times Finn claimed he washed them).

It wasn't until Kurt started dating Blaine did he realize just how intimate sharing clothing could be.

It surprised him, really. It was a romantic act. Maybe not as big as flowers or chocolates, but it didn't need to be grand in order for Kurt to connect deeply with it. Being alone so often made Kurt get used to the idea of not being in a relationship until he was at least in college. He was fully prepared to wait for a boyfriend whether he liked it or not, because really, he had no other choice. McKinley wasn't exactly the fish tank of gays.

And then, Blaine came along.

Kurt would have never expected to wake up next to a boy who was so completely different than him, but also kind of the same. He never expected to feel cool sheets against his bare skin or a strong arm bracketing him. Most of all, he never expected a smile as sweet as honey and unruly raven curls to greet him in the morning.

"It's too fucking early to be up," Blaine said with bleary eyes, even though he was smiling goofily. Blaine may have put on a bad boy frontier at school, but with Kurt, he was nothing but a huge softie.

"It's like, ten o'clock," Kurt said, and laid his head on Blaine's chest. "You're lazy."

Blaine exhaled sleepily. "You are."

Kurt huffed. "Good comeback."

They lay in silence for a moment, just soaking up the morning. Kurt was sleepy, but he didn't think he could go back to sleep now that he knew Blaine was awake. Or, at least, was trying to be awake.

"Don't go back to sleep," Kurt said, nudging Blaine's shoulder. "We'll never get out of bed. I don't wanna spend a Saturday inside."

"Why not?" Blaine yawned. "Every teenager wants to spend Saturday's sleeping in."

"You know me," Kurt said. "I'm like a busy housewife. I need to keep myself occupied."

"You're definitely not a wife, last time I checked," Blaine said, sliding his hand up Kurt's leg until it roamed onto his back.

Kurt blushed and shook his head against Blaine's chest. "Ha. Funny."

"Come on, Hummel," Blaine groaned. "Let's never leave this bed."

"Fine," Kurt said, closing his eyes again. He supposed he could give in for a few more hours. "But your room is freezing, Blaine. Jeez. Can't you turn up the heat?"

Kurt felt Blaine shift underneath him momentarily until what felt like a giant piece of fabric landed on Kurt's face. He opened his eyes and plucked the thick, navy blue sweater off of him.

"There," Blaine said. "Too tired to move."

It was Blaine's old Dalton Academy hoodie. Kurt had seen Blaine wear it before, even when he was walking through the halls of McKinley and no longer went to Dalton. It was slightly oversized and Blaine always had to push up the sleeves to his elbows. Kurt held the sweater to him and nuzzled it against his cheek. It was warm and soft, and Kurt didn't even think about the fact that it was lying on the floor from where Kurt had thrown it after he helped Blaine take it off last night.

Kurt sat up quickly and pulled the hoodie over his head. Of course it was too big, but it didn't matter. The harsh air conditioning in Blaine's room was gone now that Kurt snuggled back into the covers in Blaine's clothing.

He looked down at the hoodie and balled up his hands inside the material of the sleeves. He never thought sharing an article of clothing could feel so intimate, like a hushed secret that only the two of them knew about. It was such a simple gesture, but it provided Kurt with an overwhelming amount of comfort.

Just as Kurt was about to let himself fall asleep again, he felt lips against his. They kissed slowly and lazily; they had the whole morning to themselves. Kurt's heart swelled, because though he enjoyed every moment with Blaine, this was exceptionally perfect. They didn't get to have many quiet, peaceful moments to themselves like this.

"You look good in my clothes," Blaine mumbled against Kurt's lips.

"Is this gonna become a thing for you?" Kurt giggled.

"A thing?"

"Like a fetish."

Blaine smirked. "You're already a thing for me. I don't know, just seeing you wear something of mine just makes me kind of…proud. Like I know for sure you're mine, you know?"

Kurt kissed Blaine's stubbly jaw. "You don't need me to wear your clothes for you to know I'm yours."

"But you look so hot," Blaine spoke against the hollow of Kurt's throat. Kurt shivered, despite now being protected from the cold.

"Hmm, now I kinda wanna get you into my clothes."

"Please, Hummel. Your clothes look like something from a Tim Burton movie."

"Asshole," Kurt laughed. "You know I own comfy clothes too, right? God forbid I wouldn't make the big bag Anderson wear a button up shirt.

"Who's the asshole now?" Blaine said playfully, and Kurt could feel his lips form in a smile against his neck. Needless to say, they didn't quite need to escape the haven that was Blaine's bed for a while.


End file.
